Your Town, Your Future - The Mackenzie Spatial Plans banner image

Your Town, Your Future - The Mackenzie Spatial Plans

A 30-year vision of what the future will look like in Fairlie, Tekapo and Twizel.

Your Town, Your Future - The Mackenzie Spatial Plans

Mackenzie Spatial Plans

Tō koutou taone, Tō koutou ā mua

The Mackenzie Spatial Plans have created a 30-year vision of what the future will look like in Fairlie, Takapō and Twizel. The project ensures our main townships are maintained as places for people, ensuring growth can occur in a way that benefits the local community and improves where we live. They will be used to inform the zoning in the District Plan Review, which is expected to begin in 2022.

A spatial plan sets out a strategy for how and where a city, town or area will grow and develop into the future. It is a collaborative exercise that integrates a range of issues, challenges and opportunities and stakeholders to produce an evidence based, future focussed strategy that outlines an agreed vision and direction for the area.

The spatial plans aim to:

  • Understand what the future holds for each town.
  • Integrate existing strategies and projects ensuring the outcomes reflect Mackenzie District values.
  • Inform/facilitate the District Plan Review.
  • Ensure the Mackenzie District Council can get ahead of growth, identify key spatial improvements, then plan for it and get on with it.
  • Engage the community throughout the process.

Since this project began, Spatial Planning has come under increased focus by central government as they look to reform the Resource Management Act. One of the key outcomes from the review was the recommendation to establish a Strategic Planning Act (SPA) – to promote the social, economic, environmental and cultural well-being of present and future generations. The Mackenzie Spatial Plans ensure the MDC is ahead of the curve in this area and can ensure it can provide positive outcomes for the communities of the Mackenzie District.

The spatial planning process has been developed by the project team comprising MDC staff, Rationale, Boffa Miskell and Aoraki Environmental Consultancy who have worked together in a highly collaborative approach. The team has worked through a methodical, evidence-based process.

Mackenzie Community Survey

The process began in early 2020 with the launch of the Mackenzie Community Survey. This was carried out from 16 January to 16 February 2020 and had a total of 759 responses. Its purpose was to get a high-level understanding of the how the community feels about the district. More specifically, it asked three main questions of residents, ratepayers and visitors. The results have been analysed using an interactive online platform, which is available here.

Spatial Planning Establishment Report

The Establishment Report set the foundation for the delivery of the spatial plans and town centre plans for the three main townships of Fairlie, Tekapo (Takapō), and Twizel, as well as concept plans the smaller rural settlements of Kimbell, Albury and Burkes Pass. This report is available here.

Investment Logic Map workshops (8-10 July 2020)

Investment Logic Mapping is a New Zealand Treasury endorsed process that helps set the foundation of a programme of work by understanding the problems faced and the benefits that would be achieved by addressing those problems. These were carried out as facilitated workshops with a range of community stakeholders from each main township.

Issues and opportunities workshops (27 – 28 July 2020)

Workshops were held in Burkes Pass, Kimbell and Albury to understand the issues and opportunities encountered by the communities of each settlement.

Spatial optioneering workshops (29 – 31 July 2020)

A second round of workshops was held in the larger townships to identify what each community would like to see for the future of their town. These were interactive sessions with a wide cross section of the community which were used to in the options subsequently developed.

Shortlist Development (August 2020)

Following the community workshops, the project team developed a shortlist of three Spatial Plan options for each township, as well as a settlement concept plan for each rural settlement.

Community Engagement on Shortlists (September – October 2020)

Once the shortlists and rural settlements and had been developed, they were shared with the community for feedback. These results directly informed the identification of preferred options for each town.

Community Meetings (December 2020)

Following the shortlist community engagement, the project team came back to each community to share their findings and get further direction.

Detailed Analysis (December 2020 – February 2021)

Using the feedback received from the community, the options were analysed against a range of measures using a multi-criteria analysis tool (MCA) to identify the preferred option for each town.

Preferred Option Engagement (April-May 2021)

The preferred options were shared with the community for feedback.

Fine-Tuning (May – June 2021)

Following the community engagement on the preferred options, the Spatial Plans were fine-tuned before being presented to Council for adoption.

Adoption of Spatial Plans (June 2021)

The Spatial Plans and Rural Settlement Plans were adopted by Mackenzie District Council at a full Council meeting on 29 June 2021. They will now be used to inform future investment in each town and the zoning for each area in the District Plan Review.